Undergarment



Oct. 9, 1951 M. H. sENDERowl-rz UNDERGARMENT Filed July 12, 1949 ATOR/VEMS l Patented Oct. 9, 1951 STA-'rss ,f PATENT vor?-liCiEf I 2,570,498 n i y Y I UNDERGARMENT Morris .IL Senderowitz, Allentown, Pa., assignor to Royal'Manufactux-ing Company, Inc., Allentown, Pa., a corporation of Delaware, Application July 12, 1949,A Serial No. '104,192

1 claim. (o1, ,2,-2249 This invention relates to undergarments and more particularly to agarment of the type known as shorts or briefs, it being one object of the invention to provide a garment of such construction that its .front and crotch portions will be `strongly reinforced and the fly or fronty opening normally held closed.

Another object of the invention is to provide a garment\ which is formed of fabric which is stretchable transversely and nts snugly when worn.

Another object of the invention is to provide a garment which is of simple construction and may be manufactured at low cost.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists of a special construction and arrangement of parts illustrated in the accompanying drawing wherein:

Figure 1 is a view looking at the front of the improved garment;

Figure 2 is a vertical sectional view, taken along the line 2 2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a view taken transversely through the garment, along the line 3-3 of Figure l;

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view, taken along the line 4-4 of Figure 1; and

Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional view, taken along the line 5--5 of Figure 1.

This garment has a body I which is formed of fabric having longitudinally extending ribs so that it will be transversely expansible and will fit snugly when worn. The body has a rear section or back 2 and front sections 3 and 4 which have portions extending rearwardly to form sides for the body which are joined to side edges of the rear section by vertically extending seams 5. The lower end portion 2 of the rear section is of reduced width and to its lower edge is attached the lower end of a crotch strip 6 of double thickness which has its lower end secured thereto by a seam 'l and its upper end secured to the front sections by a seam 8. The edges of the front sections and opposite side edges of the reduced lower portion of the rear section and the crotch' strip are cut to dene leg openings 9 which are bordered by binding strips I0 formed of folded strips of ribbed fabric which are stretchable circumferentially of the leg openings so that they will expand when the garment is put on and have close fitting engagement with a persons legs. The fact that the binding strips are folded also causes the leg openings to be provided with smooth edges and prevents chang by a raw edge. Meeting inner or front side portions 3 and 4' of the two front sections are overlapped to i 2 fornita' front opening Il and closure flap .for the garment. The overlapped portions 3, and 4 have flatcontacting engagement with each other so that'a smooth't isprovided at the front of the garmentand since the extent to which the portion lfY overlaps the `portion 3 gradually increases upwardly, theffree side; edge of this. portion 0r flap 4 will extend diagonally and may be readily grasped and moved away from the portion 3to an opened position. The free edges of these overlapped portions are provided with bindings I2 formed of folded strips of fabric which extend from the seam 8 to upper ends of the said free side edges of the front sections.

In a garment of this character, which is formed of knitted fabric, considerable strain is applied to the front and the crotch portion', due to the fact that the garment lits tightly about the torso of the wearer. To protect the garment against strains and add to the wearing qualities thereof, there has been provided reinforcing strips I3 which are formed of fabric having longitudinally extending ribs. These strips have marginal edge portions folded inwardly and sewed to the front sections and the crotch strip, as shown in Figure 4. The reinforcing strips extend downwardly from the upper edge of the body portion of the garment with their upper end portions overlying the front edges of the two front sections, and upon referring to Figures 1 and 2, it will be seen that the reinforcing strips or tapes diverge downwardly towards the leg openings where they are overlapped by portions of the bindings I0, the reinforcements then converging downwardly and being crossed midway the length of the crotch strip, as shown at I4, and then diverge downwardly with their lower ends terminating at lower corners of the crotch strip.

Since the reinforcing strips or tapes extend longitudinally of the garment with their lower portions crossed, they serve very effectively to brace the garment along the overlapped portions 3' and 4 and along the crotch strip where the greatest strain occurs, and very effectively prevent the seam 8 from being ripped loose. A waist band I 5 which is formed of elastic fabric extends about the top of the body where it is secured by stitching I6, and since this Waist band is stretchable longitudinally, it may be expanded as the garment is put on and drawn upwardly into place, the waist band then contracting and fitting snugly about the Wearers waist to provide a comfortable i'lt and prevent the garment from slipping downwardly.

From the foregoing description of the construction of my improved undergarment, the assembly thereof will be readily understood and it will be seen that I have provided a comparatively simple, inexpensive and efcient means for carrying out the various objects of the invention.

While I have particularly described the elements best adapted to perform the functions set forth, it is obvious that various changes in form,

proportion and in the minor details of construcr tion may be resorted to, without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the principles of the invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed is:

An undergarrnent comprising front sections, a rear section and a crotch section, the crotch section being sewed across its front and rear edges to the lower ends of the front and rear sections, respectively, and together with the said front and rear sections defining leg openings, a waist band secured along the upper edge of the garment, the front sections having their front side edge portions overlapped between the front edge of the crotch section and the waistbandand free for the major portion of their length from their lower ends to provide an'opening and a closure flap, fabric reinforcing tapes sewed to the outer 4 faces of the front sections and the crotch section and extending vertically along the said front sections in laterally spaced relation at opposite sides of the overlapped portions thereof in downwardly diverging relation to each other between the waistband and the front end of the crotch section and then extending downwardly Yalong the crotch section diagonally towards and in crossed relation to each other with their lower end portions diverging and terminating at the corners of the rear edge of the crotch, and fabric REFERENCES CITED The lfollowing references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,027,622 Stam Jan. 14, 1936 2,258,411 magg oct. '7, 1941 2,416,108 Lloyd Y Feb. 18, 1947 

